Chapter Ten: Proof

The Gryffindor table was more subdued this Sunday morning, no doubt emptier than usual with students recuperating from last night's Quidditch party.

Hermione has missed the game– and the following celebration– entirely. To her great surprise and pleasure, Draco hadn't wanted to attend the match either. He figured their time would be better spent working on the cabinet, and seeing as how her hatred for the dangerous sport had reached an all-time high, she didn't care to argue.

According to the report Hermione was currently receiving from Ginny, Gryffindor had played their best game yet. The Lions beat Hufflepuff by such a number that Slytherin would have to beat Ravenclaw by almost 400 points to secure the cup. It seemed that the Quidditch cup was as good as won for the Gryffindors.

Harry had been up early, even before Hermione. When she climbed down the stairs earlier that morning, she found him sitting in the armchair by the fire gazing dazedly into the flame.

Briefly, Hermione worried that his solemn expression meant that they had lost the game, but Ginny's beaming smile from the next couch over told her otherwise.

It wasn't abnormal for the bespeckled boy to be in a foul mood over the smallest things, so his mumbled "morning" didn't phase his old friend. Upon Hermione's suggestion, the three early-risers made their way down to breakfast.

The girls were chatting about the match from their seats across from each other, but Harry, seated beside Hermione, did not show the slightest bit of interest in the conversation. You'd think they'd been discussing flobberworms or muggle fashion at great detail, the way he refused to join in.

He was tearing into his sausages with wrathful bites. It was rather distracting for the brunette witch, but Ginny didn't seem to notice. The redhead was gleefully retelling the entire match from the night before, right down to the looks on the Hufflepuff's faces when Gryffindor had scored their fourth goal in twenty minutes.

Ginny was initially aggravated that her best friend hadn't made it to the game, but she couldn't help but let Hermione's misdeed pass when she asked her how the game went.

As fiery as Ginny was, she was fiercely true to her friends. This meant two things for Hermione. First, it meant that she was usually quick to forgive and move on. For that, right now, Hermione was grateful. At a simple apology and Quidditch-themed distraction, Hermione was forgiven. Second, it made it all the more difficult to lie to her. Through this whole charade with Draco and all the people they were lying to, Hermione felt the worst about lying to Ginny. She knew Harry would be upset, but they would eventually work through it. With Ginny, though? There was no guessing as to how far the redhead's wrath would go. Sure, she was quick to forgive the small things, but this lie was monstrous in comparison to missing a Quidditch match. If Ginny ever found out about the fake relationship scheme, she would no doubt scorn Hermione indefinitely.

This only motivated Hermione more to keep it secret.

Just as Ginny's story was wrapping up, Dean Thomas had settled down beside her and planted a sweet kiss on his girlfriend's cheeks. His appearance quickly consumed Ginny's attention, sending Hermione's eyes to roll, eventually landing on the still obviously irritated Harry Potter.

She could tell his gaze was set somewhere across the hall, so she followed it. What she found made her eyes roll for what seemed to be the thirtieth time that morning.

"Harry, may I ask what has you glaring daggers at my boyfriend from across the hall?" she questioned.

His stern glare shifted toward her only for a moment before settling on his plate, still vicious. "It's nothing."

Hermione frowned at him. She'd known him for five years, did he seriously think she didn't know when he was lying?

"Come on, Harry. You're all but hexing him with your eyes," she declared, groaning.

"It's none of your concern."

"It most certainly is! We've been together for over a month now, surely any problem you have with him is something that concerns me," Hermione argued flashing an equally fierce glare in retaliation.

"I don't understand you, Harry," she continued. "What was it? Three days ago, you were raving all about how good he is for me, and we're back to this nonsense? I swear if you're back to convincing the world that I've gone mad-"

His fork fell to his plate in a light crash and he looked her dead in the eyes. "Look, Hermione, I understand you care about the prat, Godric knows why, but I know that you wouldn't want to hear my thoughts right now so please, just drop it."

"Oh please," she scoffed. "If this is about your 'Malfoy took the Mark' theory… Honestly, Harry, I don't want to tell you again how ridiculous you sound."

"Do you want to know why I hate him more now than when he first called you a mudblood, more than when he picked a fight with me and got me banned from Quidditch, more than when he broke my nose and covered me with my invisibility cloak? Fine, you want to know why I feel like grabbing Malfoy by the neck, throwing him down the grand staircase before bashing him into a pulp?" His voice was a savage whisper. "Do you– do you really want to know why I want to kill him three times over?"

For some reason, he didn't want any eavesdroppers, so Hermione whispered too. "Harry! What on earth–"

"Last night after the match, I was looking over the Marauders Map when I realized, I didn't see Malfoy anywhere–

"Not this again. I've told you–

"No Hermione, I know." He looked at her stiffly, almost sadly. "I wish he was a Death Eater, that would be easier. I could hate him and you could hate him and we'd be fine. But that slimy ferret is getting in the way of our friendship."

She looked at him inquisitively, but rageful. What had she done wrong? He couldn't possibly know, could he? Surely if he knew their secret, he'd be mad at her, too. The witch was offended by her friend's tactless anger.

Sensing his need to explain, Harry continued to whisper, his voice growing pained and frantic as the words tumbled out. "Listen, Hermione, I know you were with him. I couldn't find you on the map anywhere either."

"I don't understand what you're getting at, maybe the map is wrong, we haven't left the castle," she suggested while she attempted to turn back to her own breakfast signaling that she was done with this conversation. The last thing she needed was for Harry to be asking questions she didn't have the answer to.

She felt a sharp pinch at her shoulder as her best friend roughly turned her towards him again, obvious tension and unease written across his face.

"No!" he shouted in haste before lowing his volume back to their quiet tones. "This wasn't the first time, Hermione. I've figured it out now. You've been going to the Room of Requirement with him, haven't you?"

She was pretty sure a look of horror momentarily crossed her face before she could steady her features. She didn't realize the Room of Requirement was unknowable all the times she and Draco had worked in there. Her calculating expression wasn't fast enough for her usually unobservant friend to notice, however.

"So it is true!" He shook his head. "Merlin, Hermione, I never thought I'd had to have this conversation with you. At least not about that ferret." His hands started running through his perpetually unkempt hair, his telltale nervous tick.

"What do you mean, Harry? I still don't follow."

"You're sleeping with him," he said definitively. Not leaving any room for one to infer speculation.

Hermione was so shocked and unnerved. "What do you–how do you-"

He impatiently cut off her incomplete question, "I just know it. That's the only explanation I could think of as to why you two are sneaking into that room all the time. Godric, you know you're like a sister to me, 'Mione, I can't help but be angry." He ran his fingers through his hair again, unable to make eye contact with her any longer. He chose to fire another glare toward Draco instead.

She had no doubt her eyes had grown wide as he spoke, unable to believe his absurd statement. Fake dating Draco was one thing, but sleeping with him? Now that was ridiculous.

As she sat there dumbfounded, she realized that she'd either need a foolproof explanation for why they go to the Room of Requirement, or she'd have to let him believe she was actually having sex with the snake.

But she couldn't find the words. She floundered, "Harry I–I–"

Bloody hell, Hermione's mind never disappointed her, and it chose this moment to be completely empty.

Damn Draco Malfoy. Damn the stupid cabinet. Damn Harry and his damn map!

"No, Hermione, I don't want to hear about it. I don't want to know what you're thinking about. I can see your cheeks turning red. Look, I care, but I won't judge you for this. It's your life and it's your body and your decision. Just– just know that if he hurts you in any way, tries to force you to do… something you're not comfortable with, I'm here for you. And I won't hesitate to hex him where it hurts if you know what I mean," Harry said, reaching for his goblet of pumpkin juice with a practiced nonchalance that told her he must have rehearsed that little speech in his mind.

She continued to stare at him uncomfortably. She was grateful for her loyal friend, but this was too much. She was almost thankful for the distraction that Ron Weasley provided when he sat down on her other side.

They still weren't talking, Hermione and Ron, but there was an unspoken agreement that they could ignore each others' existence when Lavender wasn't around and spend time in the same group. She refused to be the girl that ran away from him. She didn't want to neglect her friendship with Harry and Ginny just because of the red-headed git.

Sure, she prefered he didn't sit next to her, but on the days she decided to actually stay at the Gryffindor table, she could deal with it.

"Oi, what's got you two squirming in your seats?" the gangly boy inquired, eyeing Harry and Hermione with a scrunched up nose that was extremely unattractive.

"Oh, haven't you heard?" the voice of his sister called, stealing his attention.

Harry and Hermione sent looks somewhere between confusion, fury, shock, and horror at the girl sitting across from them.

"Our dearest Hermione has been deflowered by the Sex God that is Draco Malfoy," she proudly announced, loud enough for far too many people to hear. "Seriously 'Mione! How could you keep something like this from me?" she squealed… loudly.

A few gasps rang out around the table, followed by a few jealous glares from other girls that were all too comfortable openly expressing their desire for Draco to notice them. All the while, Ron seemed oddly calm after hearing Ginny's exclamation, fueling Hermione's internal fury.

Shouldn't the thought of her shagging another man, especially that man being their long-term nemesis, send him into a jealous rage?

Ron started to chuckle as he reached for a glass a pumpkin juice. "No way is Hermione shagging that Ferret. I don't buy it," he said taking a sip.

"Apparently, she's been sneaking off into the Room of Requirement every night to shag the man senseless," Ginny smirked.

This was the worst day of Hermione Granger's life. Her cheeks were a blazing scarlet and people were starting to look.

His laugh roared even louder. "You all think this goody-two-shoes librarian let someone into her chastity belt?" Those who could hear stared at Ron, utterly baffled that those words came out of his mouth.

Hermione was making it snow around them all, damn accidental magic.

She focused hard on glaring at him, not wanting another argument like their last one to erupt right in the middle of the great hall. She didn't need that kind of embarrassment. Not on top of all that she was already feeling after having her virginity taken by an awful rumor.

Ron was not put off by the looks from the others. If anything, he seemed more confident. "Lavender and I can't keep our hands off each other," he boasted.

"Don't we all know," Dean groaned joining in on the conversation. Ginny and Harry rolled their eyes in agreement.

Ron's continued smile set Hermione on edge. What was he up to? Where was this going?

"Well, has anyone noticed that no one's seen them kiss? Not once! Don't you find that a bit odd?" Ron asked.

Ahhhh, she thought. So that's what he's on about. He knows! She internally cursed herself, this was not the time for their secret to come out. She looked over at the Slytherin table. Sure enough, her eyes met with the fine blonde head of her boyfriend, his back to them as he talked calmly with Blaise and Goyle. He was absolutely oblivious to the fact that their secret was crumbling around her.

She needed to say something, anything! "I've kissed Draco plenty of times, thank you very much!" Hermione insisted.

"Oh yeah? I'll believe it when I see it. If you're so bloody comfortable snogging the prat, why don't you go on over there and plant one on him right now?" Ron's tone was challenging, sending a wave of fury through her body.

The whole of Gryffindor had turned to shamelessly watch the drama unfold.

"Glady, Ronald. I have nothing to hide," Hermione spat, her temper threatening to explode.

Draco sat in pointless conversation with Blaise, something about Professor Binns' contemplating retirement or something equally uninteresting when the Italian's eyes went wide and the temperature suddenly felt arctic.

Peering just over his shoulder, Draco could see a determined Hermione storming toward him, her eyes absolutely glowing with either fury or fear. He couldn't be sure.

Before he could contemplate her further, her hands were on either side of his face and her lips were crashing into his.

It took him a second to realize what was happening. He was being kissed by Hermione Granger, whom up until recently he easily thought he felt nothing but irritation for. It took him another second to realize that even though they were only fake dating and that she had insisted that they wouldn't kiss, he didn't care. His hand found its way to her face as he kissed her back with such a force that she lost her balance. His other hand slipped around her waist to steady her and lower her slowly to his lap.

He could feel her shiver slightly at the intimate contact they made on the bench. Merlin, he couldn't believe he was actually kissing her. But it wasn't a bad kiss. NO, it was passionate and intoxicating. She bit his bottom lip so softly before his tongue begged for entrance, which she gladly gave. They both could hear the cheers and whistles that rang out throughout the Great Hall around them, but it was of no consequence. They were both perfectly lost to the world.

Somewhere far, far away, maybe in another universe, Harry and Ron were fighting against Ginny and Dean, shouting "I'm gonna kill him," and other similar obscenities as the couple frantically ushered them out of the hall.

The thought that they shouldn't be doing this crossed both of their minds, but neither of them wanted to stop.

"Miss. Granger, Mr. Malfoy, this is hardly appropriate for breakfast time," interrupted Professor McGonagall's calm voice.

Nervously, Hermione brought her lips away, her eyes still closed, and she hovered there. Her forehead rested against his. Breathing was incredibly difficult.

There's a moment between a first kiss and the eye contact that follows, where the whole world stops. The residual effects of having all of the air shoved spectacularly out of your lungs still have you feeling light-headed and you can't be sure that you're thinking properly. You have about 1.3 seconds to enjoy the way the world is spinning before the anxiety sets in.

When she opened her eyes, she saw pure silver, Draco's eyes, inches away from her own. He looked at her exactly the way she needed to be looked at. Like the whole world could crumble and he wouldn't blink.

"Hermione–

And at that one whispered word, her given name once again rolling off his tongue, Hermione was thrown back into reality. She was suddenly aware of her racing heart and physical closeness to the blonde man beneath her. She noticed how the familiar scent of pine surrounded her in every way. She heard the chatter that had erupted from all corners of the Great Hall and felt the way his arm was wrapped around her waist.

She became all-too-aware of who exactly she had been kissing.

This was Draco Malfoy. Slytherin, pureblood, fake boyfriend, we-swore-we-wouldn't-kiss, Draco Abraxas Malfoy.

Her dark eyes remained locked with Draco's, which were transforming from silver into the sharp greys she had come to know as his. But there was still something different in the way he looked at her.

This was a look she hadn't seen from him before... and she didn't quite know how to read it.

The color pink tinged her skin; nerves and embarrassment spread through her body while Draco continued to hold her securely on his lap, his eyes searching, never leaving, her own.

"Draco," she started sheepishly, "I– uh, I have a few things to get done this morning." She offered a shy smile, slowly regaining control of herself.

"Alright," he hesitated, mostly confused and unsure of himself.

She took a breath before flashing a smile in his direction. "I was thinking we could take a walk around the grounds after lunch?" Her voice was more confident now, but he thought her words were sung a little too sweetly and that smile vaguely resembled the fake one his mother often wore in unpleasant company.

He took a moment to study her features. Her cheeks were a rosy pink and softly glowing embers were resting in her irises. This was a new emotion, he knew, something he couldn't quite figure out.

Then, he remembered she had asked him a question.

"Sure," he responded. He felt the weight of one hundred eyes on them but he dared not look away from the witch still sitting on his lap. He offered her a similar smile, the kind he reserved for arse-kissing, charming his mother's snobbish friends, and getting what he wants. "A walk sounds great."

She smiled once again as she removed herself from his lap with such grace, not an ounce of embarrassment showed.

Draco watched as she left. Her shoulders were held high with dignity, leaving behind a trail of following eyes as she pushed through the double doors and exited the Great Hall.

.

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A/N: Happy Friday! Happy Valentines Day! I hope you all enjoyed your holiday, and I hope you all feel loved. If you're reading this, know that I LOVE YOU. The reviews I get every week make my heart SOAR. Again, big Beta love for the girls that help me make sure that this fic makes sense.

Soooooo... Big chapter, right? Thoughts? Please read, review, favourite, and share! I always look forward to reading the comments for this story. You all are incredible, keep it up!

Edit: I apologize for the confusion this morning where you were notified that a new chapter had been posted but for some reason, it wasn't there? :( I was trying out the "post at a certain time" feature and obviously, I buggered it up. I've seen your review questions, I hope it is fixed now! Sorry for the inconvenience.

Disclaimer: All publically recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of J.K. Rowling.

Many thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this story, OxfordElise